While Trump critics and editorial writers who’ve spent decades living in New York and Washington refer to the president’s “wall” as silly, stupid and useless, those who actually work on the border say fences are effective.
“The evidence shows that barriers work,” says Pete Hermansen, a 22-year veteran of the Border Patrol and former director of the agency’s tactical and rescue teams. “In urban areas, a wall makes sense. In more remote areas, sensors and mobile cameras may be the right choice. But you can’t say fences don’t work.”
…
The wall will be based on the eight prototypes recently constructed outside San Diego. The models recently underwent rigorous testing by special operation teams from El Paso and Florida.
According to those familiar with the tests, the walls withstood cutting torches, jackhammers and concrete saws better than anything currently on the border, and were almost impossible to climb, thanks to anti-climbing and anti-perching features.
